Editing Text Field Details

The Text Field Setup screen allows you to customize the look and function of text entry controls in an activity layout.

Name

In the Name section, you can change the name and description of the text field. The text field name is not displayed, but is part of RedEye’s accessibility feature, which allows those with difficulty seeing to receive auditory feedback through the OS when they select different controls.

Text Field Type

In the Type section, you can specify how the text field works. There are two text field types:

Action text fields use a pre-defined command to process the text you enter.

Script text fields execute a custom script to process the text you enter. More information on scripting and advanced configuration is available in the RedEye Advanced Programming Manual.

Appearance

The Appearance section determines how the text field looks. Here you can input an exact Font Size and Width, in “relative pixels.” The relative pixel measurement assumes a display width of 320.0 pixels. For iPad, we scale up the size by 40%. On other screens (Android phones and tablets, PCs running the browser app) the exact scaling factor depends on the size and resolution of the display.

Show Border indicates whether the text field displays with a thin border around the edge.

Text Color is the color of the actual characters you type into the text field, whereas Background Color is the color of the text field behind the characters. To adjust either color, tap on the appropriate color row. RedEye displays a color picker to help you choose the color you want. You can enter color values directly using Hue, Saturation, and Value (HSV); Red, Green, and Blue (RGB); or hexadecimal formats. You can also drag the crosshair cursors to find the color you want. The gradient along the bottom adjusts the color brightness; the larger top gradient allows you to choose hue along the x-axis, and saturation along the y-axis. The currently selected color appears in the upper-right corner. Tap Save once you have found your desired color.

Text Variable

The Text Variable field identifies the variable to which your text input will be saved. We use a state variable for the text value so that we can push the entered text down into the RedEye where it is processed and sent to the device you are controlling (typically via a script or command). For more information on scripting, please refer to the RedEye Advanced Programming Manual.

Action

The name and format of the last section on the page changes depending on the Text Field Type, but in all cases this is where you determine how the input text is processed. Once you finish entering text in the text field, your text is stored in the text variable, and then the action you specify here uses the value of that text variable to communicate with the device you are controlling.